C&W Sells 50% Of Two Sonae Sierra Shopping Centres

23 Jan, 2006, Lisbon

Global real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) announced today the sale of a 50% stake in the ownership of two of its shopping and leisure centres in Portugal to the PanEuropean Property Limited Partnership, a fund managed by Rockspring, for an undisclosed sum.

The two shopping centres involved are RioSul Shopping in Seixal, a development currently under construction and scheduled to open in March 2006 (GLA of 40,000 m2) and SerraShopping in Covilhã with 17,677 m2 GLA, which recently opened 100% let.

Cushman & Wakefield Healey & Baker represented Sonae Sierra in the transaction as well as in the letting of both shopping centers.

The transaction reflects net equivalent yields of 6.25% for RioSul Shopping and 6.76% for SerraShopping.

The RioSul shopping and leisure centre results from the expansion of the Continente shopping centre in Seixal and involves a total investment of € 65.30 million. It will offer a gross lettable area (GLA) of around 40,000 m2, distributed amongst 11 anchor stores including a Continente hypermarket, and a total of 127 shop units and 18 restaurants. The car park has capacity for 2,300 vehicles, 1,900 of which covered. RioSul is expected to attract 7.7 million visitors in the first year and to generate sales of €77.5 million.

SerraShopping, which was designed around the expansion of the Modelo supermarket in Covilhã, opened on 23rd November 2005 fully let. The investment totalled €30.86 million and the centre offers a total of 86 shop units with a gross lettable area (GLA) of 17,677 m2. The forecast visitor number for the first year is 4.4 million and it is expected to generate sales of € 24.5 million during the same period.

This operation underlines one of the Sonae Sierra’s main development strategies which is to form partnerships with companies of international renown that add value to the business.

PanEuropean is the co-owner of CascaiShopping, another shopping centre developed and managed by Sonae Sierra.

According to Álvaro Portela, CEO of Sonae Sierra, “This reinforcement of ties with PanEuropean confirms the long-standing trust and cooperation which exists between the two partners, and also provides Sonae Sierra with a financial input that is important to the sustained development of new projects.”

Richard Plummer, Chairman of Rockspring, added: “After a highly successful experience at CascaiShopping, our clients are delighted to have the opportunity to invest alongside Sonae Sierra once again.”

According to Luís Rocha Antunes, head of Capital Markets Portugal, “We structured a strategy focused on Sonae Sierra’s management philosophy, and on the interest generated by one of the best European shopping centre managers. The real estate investment market clearly recognizes this capacity, and that enabled an out of market transaction at full market values”.

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